The HRSA Office of Women's Health (OWH) works to improve cervical cancer care. OWH is a partner in the Federal Cervical Cancer Collaborative (FCCC). The FCCC supports the Cancer Moonshot℠ and the National Cancer Plan. The FCCC strives to improve access to cervical cancer services.
What is the FCCC?
The FCCC is a multi-year partnership among federal agencies. We work to improve cancer research and health care delivery. The FCCC is the first partnership formed across HHS to improve cervical cancer care in safety-net settings.
What is a safety-net setting?
It is a place where people with limited or no insurance can receive care. People who are low-income can access services, as well.
These settings include:
- HRSA Health Center Program sites and Federally Qualified Health Centers
- Critical Access Hospitals
- Rural Health clinics
- Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program providers
- National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program sites
- Title X clinics
What's the state of cervical cancer in the U.S.?
Studies show that cervical cancer death rates declined over the last 40 years. This is due to improving care. Screening identifies abnormal cells before they turn into cancer. Vaccines protect us from the human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV is a common virus that causes up to 90% of cervical cancers.
Why is equitable cervical cancer care important?
Some people have less access to vaccines, screening, and treatment. This can happen for a range of reasons.
Less access to health resources and care impacts:
- Communities experiencing poverty
- Rural areas
- People of color
- People with disabilities
- Transgender and gender nonbinary people
What will the FCCC do to reduce rates of cervical cancer?
Our work improves care in safety-net settings through:
- Technical assistance
- Policies and programs
- Outreach and education
What research has the FCCC led?
Landscape analysis report
The FCCC did a landscape analysis from 2020 to 2021. We looked at cervical cancer projects funded by HHS agencies. The FCCC reviewed previous research, programs, and public health initiatives.
The landscape analysis found:
- Supports and barriers to cancer screening
- Ways to improve screening for underserved patients in low-resource settings
- Gaps in screening services and research
We put out a landscape analysis report (PDF - 840 KB) of the findings. These findings were the basis for the Cervical Cancer Roundtable series.
Roundtable series
From 2022 to 2023, experts met nine times for a roundtable series.
The group included:
- Primary care providers
- Oncologists
- Patient navigators and advocates
- Researchers
- Members of government
These experts shared details about the current state of cervical cancer care. They discussed challenges, areas of potential growth, and innovations. The group identified best practices for providers. They outlined ways to work in unison on a federal level.
We created two resources from the roundtable series. We will use the discussions in 2023 to create patient education materials.
What resources has the FCCC created?
Toolkit to Build Provider Capacity
The toolkit (PDF - 1 MB) guides improvement in cervical cancer care. It outlines best practices to address challenges in safety-net settings.
Who is this toolkit for?
This toolkit is for providers in safety-net settings. In this toolkit, "providers" means all people involved in cervical cancer care. This includes anyone who interacts with patients or supports patient care.
We suggest that providers use the toolkit to:
- Improve quality of care
- Train staff
- Communicate and engage with patients
- Assess current cervical cancer programs
FCCC Opportunities Report
The report (PDF - 1 MB) suggests opportunities to improve cervical cancer care. It looks at the patient, provider, and system levels.
Who is this report for?
This report is for federal partners and health care providers that work on cervical cancer care. The report features best practices in prevention, screening, and management. It includes input from outside partners. Safety-net settings may find the best practices useful, as well. The report may inform future plans for the FCCC and federal partners. The report does not reflect current federal commitments.
What does the FCCC have planned in the future?
The FCCC plans to:
- Create materials to help providers to engage with their patients
- Hold a virtual learning series for providers
- Address other cancers that affect women more than men
Who are the FCCC's other federal partners?
- HRSA OWH
- HRSA IEA
- CDC, Division of Cancer Prevention
- CMS, Center for Clinical Standards and Quality
- NIH, National Cancer Institute
- NIH, Office of Research on Women's Health
- HHS OASH, Office of Population Affairs
Related resources
- Patients: What Is Cervical Cancer?
- Providers: Cervical Cancer Screening for Health Workers
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